One Major Arm Surgery Too Many?

The Twins’ Francisco Liriano is off to a brutal start this year.  He lost to the Rays today, his record falling to 2-7 and ERA climbing to 6.60.  Liriano is only 25 this year, but one has to wonder if all the arm problems and surgeries he’s had have ruined him.

There is some cause for hope, though.  He still appears to have good stuff.

His major problem this year has been throwing strikes.  He now has 67 hits allowed, 28 BB’s and 50 K’s in 58.2 innings pitched.  His hits per nine IP is much higher than his career average.  I tend to think that he’s falling behind hitters and then having to come in over the plate down in the count and getting hammered.  The fact that he is still striking people out suggests he’s still got a good arm, so if he improves his command, he may turns thing around in a hurry.

Joe Dillon, recently called up from AAA Durham, hit a HR for the Rays today off Liriano, the 3rd of Dillon’s major league career.  He’s 33 years old and has been a classic 4-A player.  He mostly played 3B in the minors and has a career minor league OPS of .891, which is terrific for a 3Bman.  He got a shot with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan in 2006, but the experiment only lasted 31 games and 87 ABs.  He hit only .195 with a .585 OPS and was shipped back the States.

Dillon can play some 2B, and with Akinori Iwamura out of the year with a torn ACL, this is Dillon’s last, best hope of having a major league career.  Today’s HR was a good start.